With the excitement and fanfare of the Oscars weekend here, you might find yourself craving a dose of acclaimed films. With Netflix, you can explore a large collection of both award winners and nominees across decades.
With six of Netflix’s own titles up for Oscar contention this year, the 98th Academy Awards are sure to be an entertaining watch, especially in the race for Best Picture. In the meantime, here are some Oscar-winning films that you can stream on Netflix this weekend.
American Factory
A battle of two extremes
American Factory follows the events that unfold when a Chinese billionaire reopens a shuttered General Motors plant in Ohio, bringing thousands of local workers back to work, but also introducing a completely different workplace culture. Soon, economic and cultural tensions arise after the initial days of hope, as high-tech China clashes with working-class employees.
At the 92nd Academy Awards, American Factory won the award for Best Documentary Feature.
American Factory
- Release Date
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August 21, 2019
- Runtime
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110 Mins
- Director
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Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert
The White Helmets
Follow a group of brave civilians amid chaos
Another Netflix movie that won an Academy Award is The White Helmets, a British short documentary that you don’t want to skip. This is a powerful documentary that follows a small group of volunteer rescue workers operating in rebel-held areas of Syria during the country’s civil war. Known as the White Helmets, these civilians risk their lives every day to pull survivors from the rubble after airstrikes and bombings.
The White Helmets won the Best Documentary (Short Subject) award at the 89th Academy Awards. You can also stream the full documentary on Netflix’s official YouTube channel.
Ex Machina
A Black Mirror-esque reality
Ex Machina is a sci-fi movie that is a staple watch for fans of psychological sci-fi thrillers. The story focuses on Caleb Smith (About Time’s Domhnall Gleeson), a programmer from a tech company who wins a chance to spend a week at the secluded estate of his company’s brilliant but mysterious CEO, Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac). Once he reaches Nathan’s house, he signs an NDA and learns he’s been chosen to take part in an unusual experiment: evaluating the intelligence and humanity of Ava (The Danish Girl’s Alicia Vikander), a lifelike humanoid robot with artificial intelligence.
As Caleb begins interacting with her, their conversations grow increasingly unsettling, taking on a romantic nature. But soon, Caleb is thrown into a manipulative game that he did not sign up for.
Ex Machina received a nomination for Best Original Screenplay and won for Best Visual Effects at the 88th Academy Awards.
Ex Machina
- Release Date
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April 24, 2015
- Runtime
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108 minutes
- Director
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Alex Garland
Darkest Hour
Gary Oldman’s magnum opus
One of the best historical dramas you can stream is Darkest Hour, which is also a recipient of multiple awards. The movie, led by Gary Oldman, follows Winston Churchill during the tense early days of World War II, just after he becomes Britain’s prime minister. With Nazi forces rapidly advancing across Europe and many leaders pushing for negotiations with Adolf Hitler, Churchill faces immense pressure to compromise. The story also covers the May 1940 war cabinet crisis and the ripple effects of Churchill’s decisions during that critical period.
For his role, Oldman won Best Actor at the Academy Awards. Darkest Hour also won that year’s Best Makeup and Hairstyling award.
Darkest Hour
- Release Date
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November 22, 2017
- Runtime
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125minutes
- Director
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Joe Wright
Netflix’s own movies are on the Oscar roster this year for a string of major categories, and are available to stream. You can stream this year’s Academy Award ceremony, from the red carpet to the end of the night, on select platforms.
- Subscription with ads
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Yes, $8/month
- Simultaneous streams
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Two or four
Stream licensed and original programming with a monthly Netflix subscription.
